STATEMENT OF SUPPORT FOR CHICAGO TEACHERS REFUSING TO
ADMINISTER THE ILLINOIS STANDARD ACHIEVEMENT TEST

FROM UNIVERSITY EDUCATION FACULTY

As university faculty whose responsibilities include
preparing future educators, we support the action of teachers at the Saucedo and
Drummond elementary schools in Chicago who are refusing to administer the
Illinois Standard Achievement Test (ISAT). Over a decade of research shows that
an over emphasis on high-stakes standardized tests narrows curriculum, creates
social and emotional stress for students and families, drives committed
teachers out of the profession, and turns schools into test-prep factories with
principals forced to comply as overseers—especially in low-scoring schools. We
understand assessment as the process of gathering evidence about learning, from
multiple sources, so that teachers can better support student learning. The ISAT,
in contrast, contributes virtually nothing. CPS no longer uses the ISAT for promotion, graduation, or eligibility
for selective-enrollment schools and is phasing it out after this year. It is
not aligned with Common Core State Standards—which, regardless of how one sees
them, Illinois has already adopted—and does not help teachers improve student learning.
The pre-service teachers with whom we work are demoralized about a
future of teaching in such a test-driven atmosphere. We teach our
students—future educators—to stand up for their students, families and
communities, and to take principled stands for social justice. That's what the
Saucedo and Drummond teachers are doing. We applaud them and stand with them.

(To add your name to this list, email Gutstein@uic.edu with your name, university affiliation,
and department)

Signers:

1.Pauline Lipman, University of Illinois at
Chicago, College of Education

2.Rico Gutstein, University of Illinois at
Chicago, College of Education

3.Asif Wilson, University of Illinois at Chicago,
College of Education

4.Daniel Morales-Doyle, University of Illinois at
Chicago, College of Education

5.Eleni Katsarou, University of Illinois at
Chicago, College of Education

6.Arthi Rao, University of Illinois at Chicago,
College of Education

7.Joshua Radinsky, University of Illinois at
Chicago, College of Education

8.Irma Olmedo, University of Illinois at Chicago,
College of Education

9.David Schaafsma, University of Illinois at
Chicago, English Department

10.Kenneth Saltman, DePaul University, College of
Education

11.Joel Amidon, University of Mississippi, School of Education

12.Nicole
Marroquin, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Department of Art Education